Life After Death
by willowwood
Summary: Set after ‘The Gift’ but before the beginning of season 6, Buffy must make a life altering decision


Title: Life After Death  
  
Author: willowood  
  
Rating: PG-13  
  
Author's Notes: I would really appreciate it if you could send me some feedback as it is my first ever fanfic story and I'd like to know what you think.  
  
Dedication: I dedicate this to my Mom for helping me whenever I got a case of writers block, and to my best friend Clare for putting up with me although she hates Buffy and Angel  
  
Summary: Set after 'The Gift', Buffy must make a life altering decision.  
  
Email: willowwood@postmaster.co.uk  
  
Life After Death  
  
As the portal opened a blinding flash filled the main chamber, and a figure fell crashing on to the cold marble floor, "Welcome young warrior" the female Oracle announced.  
  
Buffy opened her eyes slowly she felt tired, exhausted and her chest ached from the fall, she slowly lifted her head up wincing slightly at the pain to be confronted by a man and a woman dressed in deep blue togas. "Welcome young one" the male greeted her as she began to stand up stopping to rest her hands on her knees in an attempt to catch her breath back, "Where am I?..." Buffy questioned as she finally straightened up slightly recovered "..and who are you?" she looked at them sceptically her eyebrows raised "We work for the powers that be" the male informed, "So I'm not in heaven?" Buffy concluded slightly relieved but still confused "My dear child I assure you that it will be a great while before you are considered for either heaven or hell" the female answered with a slight chuckle ,Buffy was still a little confused and who ever these people were they didn't make much sense "But I'm dead, when I jumped into the portal it killed me" Buffys voice caught in her throat at the statement ,the female smiled at her in sympathy as the male replied "In the dimension from which you came ,it is quite true that you are very much dead ,but because of your many great battles to save humanity ,you are to be awarded a gift" Buffy couldn't believe it Giles had never mentioned anything about a gift "But death is my gift ,the first slayer told me so" she said abruptly, both male and female seem to flinch at her tone "No you misunderstand this is not a gift from you ,but a gift for you" they told her as they began pacing around the large white room, they were silent for a while before Buffy asked "So.What's my toy surprise". The female oracle came to a halt before continuing "This is no joke you have three options to decide from." she paused taking a breath before the male continued "You can either go back and continue living your life as the slayer" he moved across and stood next to the female "or we can take you back to before you were called and you can continue living your life as a normal girl" the female concluded, Buffy waited for them to continue with the third option but when they did not she decided to speak up "Wow some gift" she began and then after a pause she continued "What's the third" her voice showed her curiosity , "Your third option is this..you stay as you are now...dead" the male told her his voice uncertain, "Oh" was all that Buffy could say ,she hadn't expected this to happen and she didn't really trust them as these things usually came with a price "Ok" she began a little shakily "So I just make my decision and that's it, no tricks I just go and live my life...or death" she stepped back and rested against the wall ,she still felt a little shaky from the whole death experience "That is correct" the male confirmed. Buffy let out a loud sigh "Not that I'm ungrateful or anything, but do you seriously expect me to make my choice at the drop of a hat" she asked, "We are aware of the importance of your decision and so we are going to show you the possible outcome that your three choices may bring" they both began to approach her "Which do you wish to see first?" the female asked they were really close to her now and it intimidated her to make her choice quickly "Jeez I'm not sure ,I'd like to know what'd happen if I didn't go back" she told them ,at that they both leaned forward and each took a hold of Buffys hands.  
  
There was a sudden black out and as the image began to form before her she was aware of each of her friends standing in the centre of a construction site, Giles stood in shock staring at something behind her, and then behind him Xander stood with Anya cradled in his arms and Buffy couldn't help but smile at the thought of them getting married soon and she was glad that they were happy and then next to them Buffy saw her best friend Willow wrapped up in Taras arms, tears streaming down her cheeks ,she could remember when Willow had told her about her relationship with Tara the day Oz had come back, at first she had to admit that she had been freaked how else could she have expected her to react to news like that, but she was happy for the two of them and she believed that they were good for each other.  
  
She noticed that Spike was curled up on the floor tears stinging his eyes he attempted to move forward but stopped suddenly wincing in pain, she wondered what he would do now, whether or not he'd just go back to his old ways and wreak havoc across Sunnydale until the next slayer came or would he help the gang with their fight against evil, she hoped that he would help he had become a part of the gang and although sometimes he annoyed her she still thought of him as friend. She lifted her head to see Dawn descending the stairs of the tower ,the dress she wore was ripped and soaked in blood ,Buffy ran towards her she wanted so much to take her in her arms and stop her tears but once she was before her she noticed something they were all staring at the same spot, and so she slowly turned to look in the same direction and once she saw what it was that lay there her stomach became tight and she felt as if she were going to be sick ,as before them lay the limp and lifeless form of herself. She could suddenly remember everything of her life she could remember finding her mother dead, she could remember running away to keep Dawn safe, and mostly she could remember the last fight, Dawn getting cut by Doc, Spike getting thrown off of the platform, and her self diving in to the portal to save Dawn and her friends.  
  
Everywhere went black and Buffy then found her self sitting in a car, to the left of her sat Dawn a tear creeping down her cheek, Buffy couldn't believe how lonely she looked even when she had found out that she was the key she had never looked this upset and out of place "It's ok Dawnie" she whispered not sure if she would be able to hear her or not she reached out her hand and attempted to move a stray strand of hair out of her face but once she was close enough and she reached out, her hand passed straight through Dawn as if she was a ghost. "Hey Dawn we're almost there" the woman's voice startled both Buffy and Dawn and they both looked up to the young woman who sat in the passenger seat at the front of the car, she was smiling goofily while pointing at some thing on the side of the road and Buffy noted that it was a sign that read 'Los Angeles 10 Kilometres' Dawn forced a smile and the woman turned to the person who was driving the car, the man turned and smiled at her and Buffy realized that it was her father. At that moment Buffy wanted to scream and shout at him, god even hit him, she couldn't believe that after all this time, after all of the phone calls he had ignored, he was just turning up and dragging Dawn back to Los Angeles with his girlfriend, "Girlfriend" god how old is this man and he's travelling around the world with someone who was a old as his eldest daughter. Buffy had never seen his so called girlfriend before they were supposed to come to her mothers funeral, but like everything else he had blown it off, after all of the years they were married and he couldn't make the time to come and say one last goodbye, she began to study the woman who sat before her she seemed quite tall with long blonde hair which was loosely tied at the base of her neck, she presumed that she worked in an office as she wore a navy blue suit with a loose white top underneath.  
  
With that thought everything went black once again and the next image Buffy was confronted with was Giles and the gang standing in an airport there was an assortment of different sized suitcases surrounding them, "Now what's going on" Buffy thought to herself, Giles picked up the luggage that lay next to his feet and Willow reached out to hug him "Good luck" she said to him before slowly loosening her grip, Xander reached out and shook his hand before picking up one of the cases ,Anya dived towards him roughly and wrapped her arms around his neck ,Buffy noticed a slight tear run down her cheek and on to Giles jacket it was amazing how much she had grown as a person since they had been in high school. Tara stood awkwardly to one side a saddened smile on her face but after a while she stepped forward and slowly wrapped her arms around him, Giles accepted it, but the shock was quite clear on his face and the others. After a while they collected up all the luggage and made there way to the boarding gate, Buffy followed them eagerly hoping that he would change his mind and come back, but all thoughts were gone as she watched him walk through the doors, before she realized, she was racing towards him, "Giles" she cried out hoping that he would hear her but it was no use and before she reached him the air stewardesses had closed the doors and he was gone and so was she.  
  
Buffy then found her self outside of the Magic Box, it was late at night and the street was surprisingly empty, through the window Buffy could see figures moving around. Buffy made her way inside, there were candles scattered around in different areas, and through the dim light Buffy could see that there were boxes piled up next to the walls, a couple that were still open revealed that they were filled with amulets, books and other witchy things that were once sold in the shop. Something moved towards the back of the room that caught Buffys eye, she slowly walked forward and as soon as she was near to where the table used to be, that they would all sit at during what Willow once called a research party, she noticed that Willow and Tara sat on the floor filling the last few boxes. Buffy watched for a while and as the last box was filled she couldn't believe how empty the shop looked, "Are we done?" Tara asked as she stood and piled up the boxes they had just filled, Willow looked up and smiled weakly at her before getting to her feet as well "Yeah I guess" she looked around at the now empty and eerie looking room "Willow" Tara began "There was nothing else we could have done, with college and everything the two of us would never have been able to cope" she rubbed Willows arm sympathetically before going and collecting there bags off of the counter "I know it's just that with everybody going there separate ways ,this is only place left that feels the same as before" Willow slowly made her way towards Tara "Honey I'm sure we'll see them all again" she said reaching out and pulling Willow in to a hug, Tears began falling down her face almost immediately "No not all of them.." A loud sob escaped her throat as she continued "My best friends dead and there's nothing I can do to bring her back" Tara gently stroked and tugged at Willows hair as she continued to cry.  
  
Buffy continued to watch as the image became more and more blurred and eventually she realized that she was some where completely different. The sky was a brilliant blue and the only sound that could be heard was a chorus of bird song, in front of her Buffy could see a large white house, and behind her she heard a young couple say "Good day" to an elderly gentleman walking his dog, the whole situation looked as if it had been pulled straight out of a film, every thing was just too perfect. After a moment she heard a car pull on to the drive and she turned to see Xander stepping out of it, and surprisingly he looked very smart, he wore a pair of black trousers, with a white shirt, a tie and a briefcase stuffed under his arm "Wow" Buffy thought to herself "Xander in a suit never thought I'd see the day" Buffy smiled at the sight of him, she had always hoped that everything would work out for him eventually. He locked the car up and then made his way in to the house; once the door was securely shut, Buffy raced towards the window and peered in side. She watched as Xander entered the front room and laid his briefcase on to the coffee table before him, he looked around expectantly, and then said something that Buffy didn't quite hear, after a second or two Anya emerged from a back room that Buffy presumed was the kitchen, she was quite clearly pregnant and Buffy smiled at the two of them, Xander gently placed a soft kiss to Anyas forehead, his hand coming to a rest on her stomach, they began to talk once more and it annoyed Buffy that she couldn't hear what they were saying, and so she walked towards to the door pushing it open gently and stepping in side. "So how was work" Anya asked taking a seat on the couch, "It was good" Xander replied his tone was cheery although his features missed the usual smile, "Has Willow called?" he asked taking a seat next to her "No but I'm sure she will..soon" Anya replied snuggling in to Xanders chest "Do you wish we had never moved.." she continued shyly gazing up at him, "No" he reassured her with a smile "Sunnydale isn't safe for you and the baby not anymore not since..."  
  
Buffy looked up suddenly startled at how quiet everything had gone, she watched as the sun moved just below the horizon and the sky became darker, she stood in a graveyard and in front of her she could see a figure. As dawn neared and the sky became lighter Buffy recognised the figure as Spike, he kneeled on the ground talking to something his back to the approaching sun Buffy took a step closer so that she could hear what he was saying "I'm sorry Slayer" he began his voice low and soft "I failed you, you asked me to look after her but then Doc came and there was nothing I could do, Giles tried his hardest but that sodding judge said that custody was only available to the legal guardian" his voice had begun to raise but when he spoke again it had become low once more "I'm so sorry Buffy, there's nothing left for me in Sunnyhell" at that he stood up turning towards the sun. Buffy new that he was talking about when her father had come and taken Dawn away, she had asked him to protect her, just before they had all gone to fight Glory, she remembered seeing him during the fight, he had gone up to the platform where Dawn had been tied and tried to help but something had happened and the next thing she could remember was seeing him lying on the ground, She glanced from the sun to him, what was he doing the sun was almost up. "No" she shouted in realization, hoping that he would be able to hear her, she began walking towards him her stride becoming faster with each step "You can't be doing this" she stopped standing directly in front of him, she wanted to shake him god dam it even hit him as she had done so many times before, his eyes were empty and he looked straight through her. "Spike" she almost shouted lashing out in an attempt to hit him "Your 120 years old and your just going to die like this..just because I'm..dead" The last part stuck in her throat before she continued, taking in a large breath "Spike please you're my friend you can not do this" at that the sun rose completely and she watched as his face began to burn and then his clothes, after an instant he was gone to dust, a slight breeze scattered his ashes across the ground. Where he had once stood Buffy saw a gravestone it read "Buffy Anne Summers, Beloved Sister and Devoted Friend" and below that read "She Saved the World A Lot" She smiled through the tears that traced her cheeks, at the last part, which she new Xander had chosen.  
  
Suddenly everywhere became black once again, "Now where are they taking me" she thought to herself as the darkness began to morph in to something else, The next thing Buffy knew, was that she was standing in the corner of a dimly lit room and in front of her was a large brown leather chair, a small table stood next to it on which there was a lamp and a book. Buffy was startled when a large hand suddenly reached out from behind the chair, and grabbed the book. Something on his middle finger glistened in the light of the lamp, she couldn't quite make out what it was and so she took a step closer, it was a claddagh ring. "Angel" she whispered walking towards him, once she was close enough she watched as he flicked randomly through the pages of the book, his face looked deep in concentration and he seemed to be somewhere else entirely, As he neared the back of the book something slipped from inside the pages and began floating towards the floor, finally coming to a stop at his feet, Angel returned from his reverie and bent down to pick up what looked like a small piece of paper and as he did Buffy saw the ring more clearly "The hands represent friendship, the crown represents loyalty, and the heart..Well you know". She could remember the words he had said to her the night of her seventeenth birthday so clearly, The heart still pointed inwards and deep down Buffy new that he still wore it for her. Angel straightened up in the chair and stared at what he had just picked up, she moved behind him so that she would be able to see it as well and she recognized it as a photo she had given him just before he had left for Los Angeles.  
  
There was a tap at the door and Angels head shot up but he made no move to answer it, "Angel" a faint British voice called from the other side, but still he did not answer. After a moment the door began to open slowly and Wesley stepped in to the room "What do you want Wesley" Angel asked his voice hard and full of grief, Wesley backed down slightly at Angels tone but after a while continued "You've been up here a week, and haven't eaten anything" his whole stature told of his concern for the vampire, "I don't eat" the vampire replied his tone had eased a bit and Wesley recognised this as progress, "err.. Yes" he stuttered briefly "you know Buffy wouldn't what you to do this to yourself" at the mention of her name a slight half smile graced his features "You know Wesley did I ever tell you about the day I became human..." he began, Buffy took in a sudden sharp breath and her eyes widened in shock at the recognition of what Angel had just said. Wesley took a seat on the arm of the chair opposite Angel and waited for him to continue "...it was around thanksgiving time, just before you came actually, my friend Doyle.." He paused for a moment and let out a shaky sigh, Buffy could see in his eyes the pain and futility that he felt, "..had a vision about Buffy and so I went to Sunnydale to help her ,I kept out of her way so that she wouldn't know that I had been there..."He continued "But why?" Wesley interrupted boldly; Angel chuckled slightly as he replied "I convinced myself that if she saw me, it would only put her in more danger" Wesley nodded in understanding and so the vampire continued "..But somehow she found out and when it was all over she followed me back here to confront me about seeing her when she couldn't see me" At that a slight smile formed on Buffys face "Xander" she whispered remembering when he had let it slip during thanksgiving dinner and she had immediately rushed of to LA "While she was in the office we were attacked by a demon ,and we fought it but eventually it ran off and escaped and we decided to go after it" he paused taking in an unneeded breath, Buffy continued to watch and listen her brow furrowed in confusion " We went after it" she whispered to herself "But Angel killed it ,there in his office" before she could think anymore about it Angel continued "We looked in the sewers, but then we wondered if it had gone up to the surface and so we split up Buffy went and checked out all of the usual dives and I stayed in the sewers, and not long after that I was attacked by the demon again ,I thought I had killed it and somehow it's blood mixed with mine and I was made human" he paused taking in a unneeded breath "I went to the Oracles to see it was permanent and they said it was and that I was free"  
  
'The Oracles those must be the people who I met earlier' Buffy thought to herself suddenly her mind became a buzz of flashing images and every thing became cloudy 'she saw when Angel kissed her in the sunlight and she remembered how confused she had been, she saw when they had had tea and biscuit and had tried to convince themselves that it was best if they didn't rush in to things' more and more images followed the next and suddenly she was back in Angel room " we spent the whole day together..." he continued " we ate Cookie Dough Fudge Mint Chip Ice-cream, and peanut butter.." "Extra crunchy" Buffy finished for him and they both let out a little chuckle simultaneously "But it turned out that the demon wasn't dead, we researched it to be a Mohra demon" Wesley nodded "There blood has regenerative properties and it brought it self back" Angel nodded in agreement "Yeah bigger and stronger, and so I decided to go after it myself, it would have killed me if Buffy hadn't have shown up before she killed it ,it spoke of the end of days saying that more would come" Wesley's brow furrowed "And your sure it was dead" he asked slightly concerned "Yeah we found that to kill it properly you had to smash the gem in its forehead" Wesley removed his glasses and cleaned them vigorously before Angel continued "...I knew that being human would make me a danger to Buffy and so I went back to the Oracles and asked them to change me back ,but the only way to do it was to turn back time and that way no one but me would remember" "But how did it not happen again" Wesley asked "the first time it attacked us I killed it instantly and Buffy just left" everyone became quiet and Buffy noticed that the hand which still held the photo began to shake slightly ,it seemed that Wesley noticed it also and so he stood up and touched Angel on the shoulder leaving with a sympathetic smile as he shut the door behind him. Angel stood up briefly and walked towards his duster and began searching through the pockets, after a while he brought out his wallet and went back to the chair and sat down ,he opened it up and carefully placed the photo inside and then secured the wallet in his back trouser pocket. Buffy watched in disbelief her eyes stinging with tears, 'How could he have done something like that, how could the Oracles have let him give up something so precious and unique...It was all she and Angel had ever wished for.' How much she wanted to be able to hold him just once more, tell him that everything was ok and that she understood why he had chosen to do what he had done.  
  
At that there was a blinding white light that filled the room, and in an instant Buffy was back in the presence of the Oracles. As they let go of Buffys hands she immediately collapsed on to her knees "You see young warrior" the male began as he and the female took a step away from her "With you gone none of your friends find the need to battle against the forces of darkness anymore, as you saw for yourself some of them will move to other towns, other countries. While others give up completely by either sacrificing themselves, or just refusing to fight at all. Buffy looked up slowly an icy glare set deep in her eyes "How could you?" she asked her voice barely a whisper, neither male or female attempted to answer the question "How could you?" she repeated her voice growing louder, as she rose to her feet. "We have no say in the actions of your friends" the female informed, "There decisions are there own" the male continued, "I know that..." she shouted unintentionally "..but.Angel" she could taste the tears that streamed down her face as she spoke ".you could have told him" an uncontrollable sob escaped her throat "you could have told him that being human was permanent, that nothing could be done to.change.him.back" Buffy felt the fresh tears that began to fall once more, every where fell quiet, all that could be heard was the occasional sniffle as she clamed herself down. "We considered it the best option" the female sympathized "If the warrior had stayed human, then you would have died" she continued "But I died anyway" Buffy replied sarcastically "But you were not supposed to die, it should have been the." before he could finish Buffy held up her hand to silence him, not wanting to here the truth out loud "Show me the next one, show me what it would have been like if I had never been called" she asked stepping towards them, they turned towards each other briefly before reaching out and taking a hold of her hands once more.  
  
Every where began to go blurred "As you wish" she heard the female oracle say to her, suddenly everything fell in to darkness once again 'This is getting to be a routine' Buffy thought to herself as the scene began to form around her. She recognised the building as her old house the one she had lived in, in Los Angeles she was standing in the front room and she could see her mom sitting on the couch, there was a loud yell that came from the direction of the kitchen, and Buffy turned to see a younger form of herself breeze in to the living room "Hi dear how was school" Joyce asked the other girl "It was ok ,Tyler asked me to the dance" she replied a huge smile spread across her face "Oh that's nice" her mom mumbled ,clearly in a world of her own ."What ya watchin" the other Buffy asked quickly, taking a seat next to her mother "Just the news" she replied breaking from her reverie, Buffy quickly moved behind the couch so she could see everything more clearly. They all watched as various reports flashed by; most to do with the president and the police force, but after a while there was something that caught every ones attention. "The bodies of two teenagers, who were reported missing over a month ago were found earlier today in the town of Sunnydale, Willow Rosenberg and Alexander Harris have been included on a list of over seventy people who have been found dead or reported missing in the same area. When asked one resident described the town as" Sunnyhell" the reporter concluded, at that the television was turned off. "Willow, Xander" Buffy whispered to her self, tears stinging her eyes. "You know those two are the third set of bodies found this week..." Joyce informed the other girl, who seemed to take no interest "Honey." she said her voice raised a little, "Uh Hum" the girl finally answered startled by her mothers tone "Are you planning on going out tonight." she asked more gentler the girl looked up and smiled at Joyce "Yeah I was going to go see Tyler, we were planning to go to the mall" she replied picking up a magazine from the table in front of her "Well you will be careful ok" Joyce said standing up ,the other Buffy looked up from the page she was reading "I will..promise" she said returning to her book.  
  
Buffy felt the connection break as the Oracles let go of her hands and she returned to the large white room, for a while she was still in shock at what the reporter had said "You just expect me to be able to live my life over again remembering all of those people who were dying in Sunnydale, people who were my friends" she asked finally breaking the silence that had formed "And what about Dawn", both the Oracles shook there heads in unison "if you choose that as your decision, you would not remember anything", "So I wouldn't remember anything of my time in Sunnydale, some of the best years of my life would just disappear, my friends, my sister" Buffy acknowledged, the female nodded in response "That is true" she agreed. Buffy slowly sank to the floor; all of this was just too much to handle 'Why couldn't they have just left me to die like I was supposed to, I can't do this' she thought burying her head in her hands. She sat there for a while motionless contemplating all of the things the Oracles had shown her, "There is the future" the male said stepping forwards, Buffy lifted her up "The future?" she asked simply looking at the two of them over the top of her hands, "Yes, the future as it would be if you returned to your life as the slayer". Buffy didn't answer just simply reached out her hands towards them.  
  
Everywhere went black for what Buffy hoped would be the last time, it was really starting to annoy her now, and when the image formed around her she was surprised to see that there was nobody around. She stood in a large room that slightly resembled that of a hotel foyer, to the right of her there was a large desk that Buffy presumed must have once been the reception area, and behind that there was a laptop surrounded by a couple of large filing cabinets. To her left there was a large stairwell leading up to a balcony and Buffy could see a couple of numbered doors that led down darkened corridors. She spun around quickly as a sudden buzz of talking and laughter appeared behind her and she watched as some one strolled in from outside, on the door there was a bronze plaque that read "ANGEL INVESTIGATIONS" "This must be Angels new place" she said to herself, at first she didn't recognise the figure, but as soon as they spoke she new instantly who it was "Willow" Buffy whispered a small smile appearing on her face, she was relieved to see that she was still alive. Willow carefully manoeuvred what Buffy was surprised to see was a double pushchair in to the main room, "Connell honey" Willow began, turning to the three other children who had followed her inside "Will you go help Uncle Angel and Liam carry in the presents" the eldest of the three turned and walked back outside only to reappear a while later, two brightly wrapped presents firmly held under each arm, Buffy smiled inwardly, could all these children be Willows, she studied each of them carefully and noticed the resemblance, in the bright red hair that most of them had. "Where should I put them" the boy asked looking blankly at Willow, "Over on the counter" a familiar voice replied from outside, Buffys heart skipped a beat if there was anything she would know anywhere it was that voice "A..Angel" she cried her excitement evident in her tone, but suddenly she was stricken with worry as it was quite clearly daylight out side. As he walked through the door, Buffy couldn't help but notice that something was different about him, but she wasn't quite sure what it was "No he couldn't be" she said to herself "But he has to it's the only explanation...'Human' he's 'Human'" she almost screamed in delight , he walked over to the counter laying down a pile of presents that Buffy hadn't really noticed he was carrying, he then took the two off of Connell and turned to another child who stood behind him, she couldn't believe the resemblance the young boy had to Angel he was quite tall for his age, which Buffy guessed was around 8 or 9, his brown eyes held the same soulful glance, and his black hair was styled similarly. He handed the remainder of the presents to Angel and with a quick nod went running in to a back room, Willow walked towards them carrying a small brown haired girl and being followed by two boys and another girl who after a while all ran of in different direction. "Where's Oz" Willow asked glancing at the door "He's parking the Van" he replied "Oh...So is everything set" Willow enquired putting down the child and taking a seat "Yeah I think so" Angel said with a friendly smile "All the guests have been invited, Cordelia and Wesley are setting up the food, all that's left is the decorations but we need to wait until just before to do those" he finished taking a seat next to Willow. "Daddy, Daddy" everyone looked up suddenly startled Buffy watched as a young blonde girl raced down the stairs straight towards Angel leaping in to his arms "Hey baby" he cried lifting her up to eye level "Where's your mom" the young girl wrinkled her brow in thought before replying "She's waiting for Auntie Willow" Angel glanced at Willow and they both quickly hid all of the presents below the reception counter, "Where's Autumn" She asked wriggling in her fathers grasp "I think she's in the garden" Willow replied with a friendly smile as she ran off to find the other girl., "Hey Buffy, I'm down here" Willow shouted upstairs. After a moment Buffy noticed an older version of herself appear at the head of the stairs, Angel noticed her only seconds after she had and watched as she made her way down the stairs "Hey" she called once she was close enough to not have to raise her voice "Hey" he replied walking towards her, kissing her tenderly before they both headed towards the couch where Willow still sat, as Buffy watched she couldn't help but smile this was everything she wanted but deep down she knew it could ,would never happen. "Hey Will", the other Buffy said slipping on her coat, "Hey, you ready for our major shopping spree" Willow asked rising to her feet picking up the young girl who had wondered half way across the room "Uh Hum" Buffy replied "I'll just go and see if any of the kids wanna come" she continued turning on her heels and walking out towards the courtyard "Ok" Willow said with a quick smile turning towards Angel "What time do you want her back about?" she whispered to him, Angel thought for a moment "About sixish, the guys are coming at half five" he replied quickly as Buffy made her way back, followed by Annabelle, Autumn and another boy with bright red hair and deep green eyes "Mommy" the young boy cried "Jackson keeps picking on me" Willow shook her head at her youngest boy "Come on you can come shopping with us" she said guiding him towards the pushchair that had been parked by the doorway "Autumn would you please get his coat" she asked strapping the youngest girl in to the seat, as they made there way out in to the street, Dawn suddenly came racing inside "Dawn." the other Buffy said a little shocked "Where have you been to this early" "Know where jeez can't I go out with out you giving me the third degree" she said rolling her eyes "Where's Spike?" Buffy asked glancing outside, Dawn chuckled at her elder sister "Buffy I know you haven't been in the slaying game for a couple of years but Vampire.Daylight not a good mix" she said the last part slowly as if allowing it to register. Buffy just shook her head and marched out in to the street. "Hey Angel" Dawn said glancing around the large room "Decorations" she asked "Decorations" he replied nodding his head in agreement.  
  
Once again everywhere fell in to darkness and suddenly Buffy was inside a shop surrounded by toys, she waited for a while and eventually saw the other Buffy, Willow and there four children walk from around the corner of the aisle. "So what's it like to be thirty" Buffy heard Willow ask teasingly, the other Buffy smiled "It's great, well seen as though I wasn't expected to live past twenty" she replied pausing briefly to look at something Annabelle was waving in front of her, "Uh Hum, it's been a bumpy ride, but definitely worth it" Willow replied looking down at the two children a sleep in the pushchair, "I don't now how you do it Will" the other girl said shaking her head in disbelief "Five kids, I mean having two can be difficult" she continued "Well I've had friends to help, not to mention Oz, any way you've had Dawn to look after as well" "Yeah and Angel and Spike" both girls burst in to a fits of laughter, remembering all of the arguments those two had, had over the years, "I'm just glad that there isn't going to be a surprise party this year" Buffy said "Not with my previous record" Willow began coughing frantically "How is Spike and Dawn anyway, still hanging out together" Willow asked a mischievous glint in her eye, changing the subject quickly "There good, Spike insists on still looking after her even though Glory's long gone, Angel thinks it's because he still feels guilty about failing when Doc attacked her" she and Willow continued to walk "Have you heard anything from Tara or Giles" she asked worriedly stopping in her tracks "Yeah I spoke to them yesterday, Tara's still working with Anya and Xander in the Magic Box and Giles is still in London why?" "Oh it's just that I phoned them both this morning and neither of them was in" she said with a shrug not noticing the sneaky smile that had formed on her friends face. 'There all alive' Buffy said relieved that everyone was still there and before she could see anything else, she suddenly found that she was once again standing in the hotel foyer, all of the decorations had been put up and there were a few more people there, she could see Cordelia and Wesley standing by a table at the far end of the room laying out lots of different types of food, at there feet there sat a young Black haired girl playing with a small doll "Mommy ,Daddy" she asked suddenly glancing up at Cordelia and Wesley "When is Auntie Buffy and Auntie Willow going to get back" Cordelia stopped what she was doing and kneeled down next to the girl "Soon" she replied smoothing down the girls long hair before returning to the table to help Wesley 'Cordelia and Wesley together' Buffy thought failing miserably to stifle a laugh, she noticed that Angel and Oz were finishing hanging up balloons and banners with Thirty and Happy Birthday printed all over them and Dawn was busily arranging the presents, Buffy couldn't help thinking how grown up Dawn was, she wondered if she had a boy friend, the three boys were still playing outside in the garden. There was a brief knock and every one turned to see Xander, Anya and Tara stepping through the door two identical boys standing either side of them, they smiled quickly at Cordy, Wesley, Dawn and Oz before removing there coats and walking over to Angel, the two boys went out side with the others. "Hey.Dead boy" Xander greeted his arm around Anyas waist, Angel gave him a sly look and didn't reply "W..Where's the birthday girl" Tara asked nervously, Angel gave her a friendly smile "Willows keeping her busy,...Shopping" they continued talking for a moment but were interrupted by someone behind them casually clearing there throat, Buffy glanced up and was surprised to see Giles standing in the door way, "Giles" Dawn cried running towards him giving him a big hug, everyone turned to Giles, some seemed more shocked to see him than others did. Buffy presumed that they hadn't seen him in a while especially with Giles living in England now, after a lot of greeting and hugging, Spike suddenly came racing inside "The slayer's coming" he shouted screeching to a halt, they all looked at him unbelievably shaking there heads, Buffy shook her head in unison, he still can't bring himself to call me Buffy she thought amusingly. "She didn't see me" he said honestly as everyone quickly raced around tidying everything up and getting in to there hiding positions, once every one was ready Spike turned out the lights." Why are all the lights out?" Buffy complained as she entered through the door carrying handfuls of bags ,She reached out and searched for the light switch and as she turned it on everyone jumped out of there places "SURPRISE.."  
  
Buffy was brought back suddenly and she was a little disappointed that they had done it that moment, the Oracles took a step away from her "You have now seen all of your options, and you must make your decision" the male said immediately, Buffy looked up at the two of them "Before I make my decision I must ask you something" Buffy said rising to her feet "All of the things I have seen today is that what will happen some time in the future" both the Oracles nodded there head in unison "There will be a lot of hard battles before then ,but it will eventually be" the female replied "So Angel will become human" she asked "If all goes to plan, the warrior will gain his humanity" at that Buffy couldn't help but smile , "I want to go back as the slayer" she told them finally making her decision , both of the Oracles smiled at her and Buffy realized that it was the firs time either of them had shown any kind of emotion. "You have chosen well child, and so the Powers That Be Have decided to grant you what you may call a wish" the female said, Buffys smile grew even wider, and she new instantly what she was going to wish for "I.......  
  
There was a sudden tap at the door to Angels room, he glanced at it from where he sat in a large leather chair but made no attempt to answer it, "Angel" Wesley called from the other side, but still he did not reply. After a moment Wesley knocked again and with a loud sigh Angel moved across to answer it "What do you want Wesley" he asked sounding rather annoyed, as he opened the door he suddenly collapsed to his knees falling at Wesleys feet "Angel" the British man cried kneeling down next to him a worried look etched his face. From down stairs the telephone began to ring "Cordelia answer the phone" Wesley shouted from Angels side "Angel are you alright?" he cried. The phone continued ringing "Cordelia" Wesley shouted "Will you answer the God Damn Phone", "Jeez" Cordelia said finally picking up the receiver "Hello Angel Investigations we help." she trailed of suddenly and fell silent. Back in his room Angel took in a sharp breath as the sudden pounding in his chest began to quicken and he could feel the blood rushing through his veins, he felt as if he was suffocating and began to take in deep breaths.  
  
After putting down the handset Cordelia made her way up to Angels room her face blank, Angel lifted himself up to a standing position breathing deeply he began "I.I'm..." before he had a chance to finish Cordy entered Angels room "Guys your never going to believe this but Buffy's..." Wesley looked between the two of them waiting for either of them to continue "..Alive.." they both said simultaneously...  
  
The End 


End file.
